Sport shooting in Switzerland
The Swiss Shooting Sport Federation, founded in 1824, is the umbrella for about 2,600 clubs — practically every village has one — in 36 member associations, and with some 130,000 members it is Switzerland’s fifth-largest sports federation. Every five years its Federal Shooting Festival, the Eidgenössisches Schützenfest, draws 40,000 to 50,000 participants.
The federation recommends air guns as the way in, from about eight, and at 15 a shooter can take a young shooters’ course with the army’s Sturmgewehr 90. Buying a firearm generally takes an acquisition permit from the cantonal weapons office, but a bolt-action sport rifle needs only a written contract, which the seller sends to that office within 30 days.
Gun licence in Switzerland
- A pistol, revolver or semi-automatic needs a Waffenerwerbsschein (acquisition permit) from your canton for each gun; a bolt-action sport rifle needs only a written contract.
- A centre-fire semi-automatic with a large magazine needs an Ausnahmebewilligung (exceptional authorisation): club membership or regular shooting, shown again after 5 and 10 years.
- Guns you own, acquired with a Waffenerwerbsschein or a contract, carry no licence term and no activity requirement.
Federations
- SSV ·
Targets
SSV
Swiss shooting clubs, under the Swiss Shooting Sport Federation, also host the state-funded Feldschiessen — billed as the world’s largest shooting festival — and the army’s yearly obligatory programme.
| Target | Weapon | Distance | Scoring area |
|---|---|---|---|
| SSV 10m Air Rifle | Air rifle | 10 m | 45.5 mm |
| SSV 25m RF Pistol | Pistol | 25 m | 500 mm |
Sources: SSV, “Verband”; SSV, “Was ist Schiesssport”; fedpol, “Bewilligungspflichtige Waffen”; fedpol, “Feuerwaffen”; SSV, Regeln für das sportliche Schiessen (2022), read on .